Muse of the Day

Classics Reading Challenge 2010 - Progress...

2010-02-25T00:25:00.000-06:00

Well, here we are at the end of February, and I'm doing fairly well with my challenge of reading twenty classics I've never read before from the list. (If you're interested, the list can be found here.)

I've started out with the easy books, but I did throw in extras. For instance, Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne is on the list, House at Pooh Corner is not, but was in the same volume so I read it too. Eeyore is a lot more sarcastic in the books, Kanga and Roo seem to have been additions to Christopher Robin's collection of stuffed toys and don't enter the book until later. Tigger isn't even in the first book. Rabbit and Owl seem based on live animals and are therefore more intelligent than the stuffed animal characters. But Christopher Robin is the most intelligent, taking on the role of a benevolent god in the Hundred Acre Woods. I went there a few years ago, and there are markers where various scenes in the book took place. It's not as impressive as one would hope, but Pooh Stick Bridge (pictured) looks much like the illustration--I wonder if the bridge has been replaced as it looked new.

It was interesting to compare the first book, based on stories Milne told to his son, and the second which was written as a sequel when Christopher Robin had apparently outgrown the stories and was off at school. The introduction and conclusion of House at Pooh Corner had an almost bittersweet quality. I noticed a similar contrast between Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (which I read last year) and Through the Looking Glass, which I finished last week. Alice is rather obnoxious in the first, and more mature and likable in the second. There's much more structure in Looking Glass--it's based on a chess game (as wacky as Wonderland seems, Carroll was a mathematician, and there is a sort of logic to the fantasy world), and it's clear when Alice moves from one square to the next as a pawn. Similarly, Milne's second novel shows more structure, written for a public audience as opposed to a record of oral stories written down for one child. Movie adaptations of both seem to have blended the two books together. The talking flowers and Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, who appear in the Disney film, are from the second book, for instance. As a companion, I read a short biography on Carroll, Lewis Carroll in Wonderland by Stephanie Stoffel, which gave a good overview of his life and a lot of photos. The thing most people know about Carroll is that he liked to photograph children--was in fact one of the most renowned children's photographers of his day--and seemed to have a fondness for spending time with children that was questionable for a single man. It seems his friendship with Alice Liddell, on whom Alice is based, ended abruptly before the book was published. He kept a daily journal, but a niece tore the pages referring to whatever happened between him and the Liddell girls out. One theory is that Alice got to be close to marriagable age and it was no longer appropriate for her to spend time with an unmarried man. There is also a theory that he may have been in love with her and interested in marraige (which wouldn't have been unheard of at the time, despite the age difference), though he was not a suitable suitor due to the class difference (Mrs. Liddell was socially ambitious).

The third classic on the list I read was the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote. The book is much more liberal than the Audrey Hepburn movie, and more poignant with a very different ending. It reminded me a bit of a modern-day Camille by Dumas fils. (the basis for my favorite opera, La Traviata) in both plot and overall structure. The most notable difference to me when compared to the movie were the frequent, casual references to lesbianism--I can't imagine that being in an Audrey Hepburn movie. the edition I read also contained a few other short stories by Capote which are worth reading because they show his strength for character-driven short stories.

I supposed my conclusion so far on the Classics Challenge is that while reading a work by a classic author is good, reading two or three gives you a better understanding. I know that isn't a very profound observation, as it seems rather obvious. I guess another way to put it is that being widely read doesn't necessarily mean a wide variety of different authors, but rather a deeper understanding of each author. however, I think you do need to read broadly to find the authors you want to read more of, and be open to all types of books. You never know what you might end up liking.

I started the next book on the list, Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, last night. Though only two chapters in, I think she's another author I'll want to read several books by. Seems the goal of 20 books on that list (which lists one book by each of 150 classic authors) is going to be a bigger challenge than I thought, but a worthwhile one.

New Blog! LiteracyChallenge.blogspot.com

2010-01-12T23:54:00.000-06:00

I have a really good reason for not posting for a while--I've started a new blog. I was telling a coworker about how I planned to challenge myself to read 20 classic books that I haven't read from the list of 150 I've mentioned before. The 20 will count toward my usual 52-books-a-year goal. She was interested in joining me (we're starting with A.A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh and next are reading Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote). Then I mentioned it to other friends and family members, and they were interested in doing the same thing, or something similar. So I decided to create a resource blog to post the classics list, and other recomended reading lists and challenges. My hope is to get others to contribute recomended lists for specific genres, since I have broad but not necessarily deep knowledge of various genres.
The blog is at http://www.literacychallenge.blogspot.com/. Please check it out!

Reading Challenge 2010

2009-12-08T22:41:00.005-06:00

I was thinking about what to do as my reading challenge next year. Having conquered the 52 books finished in a year, I could do it again, or increase the number, but it would be nice to do something different.
Early this year, there was a quiz circulating on Facebook based on a report by the BBC that claimed most people had only read 8 out of a list of 100 books. While it was a fun quiz, I found it a problematic measure of deep literacy. Some books were doubly listed--both Hamlet and The Complete Works of Shakespeare as well as The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Chronicles of Narnia appeared, and the respective latter two are really collections of several books. The other issue for me was there was an emphasis on contemporary popular fiction, particularly British fiction. How could Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code make the list when Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, and Nathaniel Hawthorne didn't? For that matter, why include several works by Austen and Dickens and omit those American authors. Granted, this list was British and no doubt aimed at the general public (hence the inclusion of recent popular works), but I wanted a more comprehensive list.
And so I created my own Literacy Quiz, which I've posted below. I tried to think of classic works of fiction, and include one book for each author. To be a "classic," it has to have stood the test of time, which I set at 50 years. I focused on literary fiction, but also included key works in genre fiction. I also tried to include books from different countries. I used the BBC list in part, but mostly searched lists of top books and recommended reading lists. Because I was only including one work from each author, I had a scoring system to give credit for reading a different book by the same author. In the end I listed 122 books, and left 3 spots to write additional books at the quiz-taker's discretion.
So what I'm thinking is that my goal for 2010 should be to read a certain number of classics. They should primarily be books on the list below, or at least by the authors on the list below. I'm not sure how many. I'm thinking 20, but that would be about a classic every two weeks, and most classics take longer to read. I may also stick with my 52-book total quota--I need my commercial fiction fix, and I want to stay current on contemporary fiction, as well as nonfiction. So perhaps I should start with 10, and if I finish them by June, I'll make it 20. I think this will be a good way for me to keep reading, but emphasize the classics.
I may also include authors or books not on the list. I didn't include plays, which is why Shakespeare isn't included, but there are a few of his plays I haven't read. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller was published in 1961, so it didn't meet the 50-year criteria, but it's very close. I simply didn't think of All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque, and am actually currently reading it. Though I'll likely finish before the end of this year, I'm tempted to count it anyway since I've finished my 2009 challenge, and want to get started on the next one!

The Literacy Quiz

2009-12-08T22:06:00.000-06:00

I Scored 207 on the Literacy Quiz!

Below are classic works by over 100 authors. These are books that are generally recognized as having great literary value that have already stood the test of time (i.e. have been in print for about 50 years or more). There are three slots for bonus titles: books by authors you think should be included (feel free to disregard the 50-year rule).

To determine your Literacy Score, use the following rules:
4 points – if you read the book listed
5 points – if you read the book listed and it wasn’t a school assignment
3 points—if you read a different book by the author than the one listed

1. Aesop’s Fables -
2. Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe -
3. Little Women - Louisa M Alcott - 5
4. Winesburg, Ohio – Sherwood Anderson -
5. Foundation – Isaac Asimov -
6. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen - 3
7. Go Tell It on the Mountain – James Baldwin -
8. The Black Sheep - Honore De Balzac -
9. The Wizard of Oz – L. Frank Baum - 5
10. The Adventures of Augie March – Saul Bellow -
11. The Mandarins - Simone de Beauvoir -
12. Beowulf - 4
13. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte - 4
14. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte -
15. Fahrenheit 451 – Ray Bradbury - 5
16. The Good Earth – Pearl S. Buck -
17. Pilgrim's Progress - John Bunyan -
18. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett - 3
19. Tarzan of the Apes – Edgar Rice Burroughs -
20. Breakfast at Tiffany’s – Truman Capote -
21. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold – John le Carre -
22. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll -
23. My Antonia – Willa Cather -
24. Don Quixote – Miguel de Cervantes - 4
25. The Big Sleep – Raymond Chandler -
26. The Canterbury Tales – Geoffrey Chaucer - 4
27. The Awakening – Kate Chopin -
28. Murder on the Orient Express – Agatha Christie -
29. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins -
30. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad - 4
31. The Last of the Mohicans – James Fenimore Cooper - 4
32. The Red Badge of Courage – Stephen Crane -
33. The Enormous Room – e. e. cummings -
34. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl - 5
35. Divine Comedy - Dante -
36. Robinson Crusoe – Daniel Defoe -
37. The Man in the High Castle – Philip K. Dick -
38. Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens - 3
39. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky -
40. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - 3
41. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier -
42. The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas -
43. Camille – Alexander Dumas fils. - 5
44. Middlemarch - George Eliot -
45. Invisible Man – Ralph Ellison -
46. The Sound and the Fury – William Faulkner -
47. Tom Jones - Henry Fielding -
48. The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald - 4
49. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert -
50. The Good Soldier – Ford Maddox Ford -
51. A Passage to India – E.M. Forster -
52. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons -
53. Lord of the Flies - William Golding - 5
54. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame - 4
55. Riders of the Purple Range – Zane Grey -
56. She – H. Rider Haggard - 5
57. The Glass Key – Dashiell Hammett -
58. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy -
59. The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne - 4
60. Catch-22 - Joseph Heller -
61. The Old Man and the Sea – Ernest Hemmingway - 4
62. Cabbages and Kings - O. Henry - 5
63. The Odyssey – Homer - 4
64. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo -
65. Their Eyes Were Watching God – Zora Neale Hurston -
66. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley -
67. Daisy Miller – Henry James -
68. From Here to Eternity – James Jones -
69. Ulysses - James Joyce - 4
70. The Metamorphosis – Franz Kafka -
71. Just So Stories – Rudyard Kipling - 5
72. Lady Chatterley’s Lover – D.H. Lawrence -
73. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee - 4
74. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis - 5
75. Babbitt – Sinclair Lewis - 4
76. The Call of the Wild – Jack London - 5
77. The Naked and the Dead – Norman Mailer -
78. The Magic Mountain – Thomas Mann -
79. Of Human Bondage - W. Somerset Maugham - 3
80. Selected Short Stories - Guy de Maupassant - 5
81. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez -
82. The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter - Carson McCullers -
83. Moby Dick - Herman Melville -
84. Tales of the South Pacific - James Michener - 3
85. Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne -
86. Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell -
87. Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery - 5
88. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov -
89. A Good Man Is Hard to Find – Flannery O’Connor -
90. The Scarlet Pimpernel – Baroness Orczy - 5
91. Animal Farm - George Orwell - 5
92. Selected Short Stories - Edgar Allan Poe - 5
93. Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand -
94. Clarissa - Samuel Richardson -
95. Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger - 4
96. The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery -
97. Ivanhoe – Sir Walter Scott -
98. Frankenstein – Mary Shelley - 4
99. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute -
100. The Jungle – Upton Sinclair -
101. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn – Betty Smith -
102. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck - 3
103. Treasure Island – Robert Louis Stevenson -
104. Dracula - Bram Stoker -
105. Uncle Tom’s Cabin – Harriet Beecher Stowe - 4
106. Gulliver’s Travels – Jonathan Swift -
107. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray -
108. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy -
109. The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien -
110. Lady Anna - Anthony Trollope - 5
111. Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain - 3
112. Rabbit, Run – John Updike -
113. The City and the Pillar – Gore Vidal -
114. All the King’s Men - Robert Penn Warren -
115. Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh -
116. The Time Machine – H.G. Wells - 5
117. The House of Mirth – Edith Wharton - 4
118. Charlotte’s Web - EB White - 4
119. The Picture of Dorian Gray – Oscar Wilde - 3
120. Little House on the Prairie – Laura Ingalls Wilder - 4
121. To the Lighthouse – Virginia Woolf -
122. Germinal - Emile Zola -
123. (bonus) Harry Potter series - 5
124. (bonus) The Bluest Eye – Toni Morrison - 5
125. (bonus) The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood –

Don’t forget to change the score to your own in the subject line!

Mission Accomplished--52 Books Read

2009-11-29T21:39:00.000-06:00

Well, I'm happy to report I've accomplished my goal of finishing 52 books this year, and with a month to spare!
Of course with a project like this I had to keep a record--to be honest, I wouldn't remember I'd read some books if I didn't write them down, which tells you of the impact of those books. Basically, I just kept a spreadsheet of the book details (title, author, genre, etc.), my personal rating, and maybe a brief note.
As far as my goal of being diverse, I'm reasonably satisfied, though I probably could have read a greater variety of nonfiction categories--I mostly stuck with memoirs, travel, essays, and humor. Another of my earlier goals was to purge my shelves, and I got rid of about half of the books I read that I owned (some were borrowed from the library or friends). Basically, anything that didn't get a 4-star rating or higher went in the canvas bin for donations/used book store trade ins.
Before I get to my favorite books of the year, I should briefly explain my rating system. There are half stars, but obviously those are for books that fall between.
* = repulsive, I actively disliked this book. Nothing got one star because I wouldn't have finished it, and only the books I finished counted.
** = Didn't like, regretted reading it. Only three books got a 2, two of which were slightly obscure 19th century children's *** classics.
= Okay, enjoyable read. Most books got this, which isn't surprising since I focused on books I wanted to read.
**** = Exceptional, I would read it again or recomend it to a friend. I'll note these in a moment.
***** = An all time favorite. None received this. There are only a handful of books I've ever considered a 5.
I should also note that my rating system is entirely subjective, naturally, and vastly skewed according to my personal preferences. I also weigh books in the context of their genres. For instance, a romance novel could get a 4, while Hemingway earned a 3. You can't compare carrots and cupcakes, each have their place and can only be compared to their kind.
So, without further rambling, here, in order of having read them, are the 4-star books of 2009 (a.k.a. those I would recomend):

Lord of Ice by Gaelen Foley (historical romance)
A Walk Across America by Peter Jenkins (memoir/travel)
What I Did for Love by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (contemporary romance)
Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott (memoir)
The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsely (personal finance)
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver (fiction)
Wildlife Preserves by Gary Larson (humor)
The Widow of the South by Robert Hicks (historical fiction)
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (classic/science fiction)
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris (memoir/essays)
Lord of Fire by Gaelen Foley (historical romance)
Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich (mystery)
Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede (YA/fantasy)
Searching for Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede (YA/fantasy)
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris (memoir/essays)
Signspotting III by Doug Lansky(humor)
The Good Thief by Hannah Tinti (historical fiction)
Bear Portraits by Jill Greenburg (photography)
In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck (classic/fiction)

I tried to be diverse in my reading. I work on commercial fiction, so I try to keep up on genre fiction (romance, mystery, science fiction, young adult, etc.) I also tried to get in a few classics, and for most it was evident to me why they've lasted.
So now I'll have to think about what adjustments to make for 2010. More books? More diversity? Hmmm....

A Novice in the Land of Manga

2009-11-16T19:14:00.011-06:00

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been investigating the genre of manga. It's been a slow journey, but quite interesting because manga is a unique format (illustrated, like comic books), and heavily influenced by Japanese culture (because, well, they're translated Japanese books).
Traditional manga books read from right to left, meaning you start on what we would consider the last page, and read the top right panel first and proceed to the top left, then the second right panel, and so on. The panels are sometimes different sizes, so this can vary. Thinking this style wouldn't catch on in the US, they originally reset the books to read the Western way, a very time-consuming and costly process. But it's actually not difficult to adapt to. Manga written by Western (American) authors, and manhwa, which is the Korean equivalent of manga, is written in the Western style, like American comic books.
Manga is actually a Japanese adaptation of American comic books, which I think one of the great things about global culture. Japanese artists adapted American culture, and now their adaptation has caught on with a fierceness with American readers because of how they made it uniquely their own. In Japan, manga is published in thick magazines that feature different series. Episodes from popular series are then bound into books, and series of these books are published and translated for English-speaking audiences. A manga book might contain four episodes, and the beginning might remind readers of the concept or back story of the series, particularly in early episodes. This seems odd in the book, but makes sense when you consider how it was originally serialized.
Popular series are also made into animated television series. Anime series sometimes stay close to the books, but some episodes may differ, most often toward the end of the anime series to give it a conclusion where the books continue the story of the characters. Another impetus for me reading manga was checking out a few anime series on Netflix and online at Hulu.com and FUNimation.com after falling in love with the anime movies of Hiyao Miyazaki. Miyazaki is distributed by Disney in the US, and his movies are brilliantly imaginative, and so different from what I'm used to seeing. My favorites are SPIRITED AWAY and MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO.
Manga is divided into sub genres according to gender and age. As far as what you'll find in the bookstore, it's primarily shojo manga for girls and shonen manga for boys. There's also kodomo manga for children under 10, josei manga for women, seinen manga for men, and hentai or ero manga which features very explicit adult content. I've mostly focused on shojo manga thus far. I tried a few shonen books, but the ones I read focused on fight scenes and/or scantily-clad female characters (very like American superhero comics).
In Japan, manga is read rapidly, and embodies the idea of a 'picture is worth a 1,000 words.' I've not come close to mastering reading a picture along with the words at a quick pace, and don't know all the symbolism. The shape of the eyes will tell you about the character's personality, for instance. Some of these are obvious, and akin to American comics (big eyes = good, squinty eyes = bad). Also, apparently the hair color is significant, but as most manga is black and white, you have to rely on dialogue or cover art--I think this may apply more to anime series than manga.
There are some characters unique to Japanese culture. The one that most frequently appears in shojo manga is the bishonen--basically a really good looking guy who often appear nearly feminine. Another odd one is a teen character who is drawn and behaves like a child relative to the other characters despite being the same age--I don't know if this character type has a name, but I saw it in several series.
There are other odd things that come up that take a bit of adjustment. When characters have extreme emotions, they turn into child-like caricatures of themselves. When they're nervous, a big sweat drop appears on their heads. Most baffling of all, when they are attracted to someone they get explosive nosebleeds. I still don't get that last one, but speaking of, apparently in Japan sharing your blood type is like telling someone your astrological sign, so it's included in the character profiles, and the authors will often note theirs in their bios.
Probably the biggest challenge for me was keeping the characters straight. Not only do they sometimes look similar, there are usually a lot of them and they have unfamiliar Japanese names and nicknames. Then there's the honorifics added to their names, which differ according to the relationship between the character and the speaker. For instance, a male character named Tamaki might be called Tama for short, Tamakisan (like Mr. Tamaki, general term of respect), Tamakikun or Tamakun (term of endearment used by close friends), Sempai by someone younger in school or a club, or Kohai by an upperclassman or senior member of a club. A female character can also have a -san added (like Ms.) or -chan as a term of endearment (the equivalent of -kun for boys). You can see how it can get confusing for a new reader. I think I've got it down, but it took a while (and a helpful glossary of terns from one series).
I also learned a lot from a book called Understanding Manga and Anime by Robin E. Brenner, which is a guide written primarily for librarians that gives a good overview and recommendations of series. If you're a parent, you'll find age ratings on the back cover that are in line with American standards. The Japanese have a different approach to sexuality, but for the most part I've found the shojo series to be very tame by American standards. A more open attitude toward homosexuality and cross-dressing are the most noticeable differences relative to American YA series. For some reason, the girls find it attractive when the heartthrob dresses like a girl--but since the bishonen look a bit feminine, maybe this makes sense.
I think the main appeal of these series is that they are plot driven with strong characters, can be read quickly, usually have cliffhangers, and for shonen manga tend to center on a love triangle. As far as specific series, the ones I liked best so far are as follows:
FRUITS BASKET by Natsuki Takaya - An orphaned girl moves in with a family with a secret--the members change into animals of the Chinese zodiac when hugged by a member of the opposite sex. There's a love triangle between the girl, gorgeous but lonely Yuki who transforms into the rat, and the rebel and family outcast Kyo, who becomes the cat (the animal cast out of the zodiac).
OURAN HIGH SCHOOL HOST CLUB by Bisco Hatori - A tomboy attends an exclusive private school on scholarship, where she is mistaken for a boy and ends up part of a social club full of good looking boys who entertain girls with lavish parties. They call this a reverse harem, a theme in manga where a girl hangs out with a group of goodlooking boys. Another example would be BOYS OVER FLOWERS by Yoko Kamio. I wouldn't recommend starting with OURAN, as I did, because it's a tongue-in-cheek take on common themes of the genre. If you read it without knowing what those themes are, it's a bit baffling and weird, but I grew to like it more and more as I kept reading different series.
MAMMOTTE! LOLLIPOP - An average girl accidentally swallows a magic pearl that is central to a final exam for wizards from another dimension. In order to protect her from others, and pass the exam, two young male wizards (yes, love triangle) have to stay by her side at all times. This series tends to stray a bit into shonen, with each episode having a battle scene where the characters use their unique powers.
GOONG by Park Sohee - This is a manhwa series (i.e. Korean) with beautiful illustrations which reimagines Korean society as having a royal family (like Britain). It focuses on a high school girl who is married to the surly but attractive prince through an arrangement made by their grandfathers and has to navigate palace life. There's a lot of intrigue and politics, and a love triangle involving the prince's cousin--the original heir to the throne before his father died. It's more contemporary and targeted at older teens than the aforementioned series.
DRAMACON by Svetlana Chmakova - also focused at older teens, this is a brief (3-book) series about a young woman who wants to become a manga artist. Each book takes place at a manga/anime convention and it delves into the culture of the genre.
I know I still have more to learn, but I hope this post informs and perhaps even inspires. If you are a manga fan and have any recommendations, I'd love to hear them.

52 Books a Year

2009-11-14T15:03:00.008-06:00

As I've mentioned before, I'm a bookaholic. Back in late 2007 I faced the usual dilemma--I had binged at the bookstore, and had a stack of books and no shelf space to put them. I've learned to occasionally weed out any books I no longer want. However there were no weeds at this point--I'd have to read some before I'd know if I wanted to keep them. The problem has always been that I shop faster than I read. So I decided that I would read as many books as possible. I didn't have to finish if I didn't like it, the goal was to purge the shelves, after all. But this naturally meant that I focused on the books I thought I'd least enjoy. It's not much fun to read that way.
For 2008, I changed the rules. I would see if I could read a book a week for a year. By the end of the year, I'd read 54 books. I was focusing on books I wanted to read more, and I did manage to get rid of about half of them. But I can't honestly say, "I read 54 books," because to me saying you read a book means you finished. And I didn't finish some of them.
So I upped the stakes again for 2009. Again, 52 books in a year is the goal, but I have to finish them. I think I've mentioned this before, but as the year has progressed, I've refined the rules.I have to be diverse, reading fiction and nonfiction, a variety of genres and authors. Audio books, I decided, count. The idea is no longer to purge the shelves (a hopeless goal, I accumulate about three books a week on average). The goal is to be more broadly read.
By summer, I was well ahead of schedule, and then I walked into my local Borders and noticed they'd rearranged the shelves, primarily to move the teen books into the adult part of the store and farther away from children's books. Most prominent was the manga section, which dwarfed the regular teen book section and was in the center of the store. I knew manga was hugely popular with teens--a friend of mine who teaches high school noted it's all kids are reading. All I knew was they were Japanese illustrated novels. So I decided I wanted to understand what the fuss was about and hit the library, where there were two large spinning racks of manga books. I'll save what I've learned about the genre for another post, and focus instead on what it did to my plan. Manga books can be read in about an hour or two, and I was reading about nine a week. I played with different ways of counting them--a full series would count as one, ten mangas would count as one regular book, etc.. after all, they're books, in a different genre, and I finished them, so they should technically count...but that made it too easy. So I decided none of them would count, and now was barely ahead and had to catch up.
So, here it is, second week of November, and I'm at 48 books read (not counting any manga). Things are looking good, but I don't know if the holidays will mean more or less reading time. Still, I'm confident, so when I've finished number 52 I'll post again, and talk about the top books I've read this year. Until then, I better get back to reading!

Literary Destinations in England

2009-10-30T20:11:00.015-05:00

I doubt this list is nearly complete, so feel free to comment if you see anything missing. I went to England about ten years ago and visited a few of these sites (which I've starred)--wish I had a digital camera back then, but I guess it gives me an excuse to go back (as if I needed one)! The photos below are the ones I took with my 35mm.

BERKSHIRE
Church Cottage, home of Kenneth Graham – Pangbourne

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE

*John Milton's Cottage - Chalfont St. Giles (pictured)

CUMBRIA
*World of Beatrix Potter- Bowness
*Dove Cottage, home of William Wordsworth - Grasmere (pictured)
*Hill Top, home of Beatrix Potter - Near Sawrey

DORSET
*Thomas Hardy's Cottage - Dorchester
Dorset County Museum, Thomas Hardy - Dorchester

KENT
Charles Dickens' Bleak House Dickens Maritime & Smuggling - Broadstairs (now a private residence, no longer open to the public)
Charles Dickens House Museum - Broadstairs
Geoffrey Chaucer Centre - Canterbury
Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales - Canterbury
Dickens World (Charles Dickens-themed amusement park) – Chatham Maritime
The Royal Victoria and Bull Hotel, haunt of Charles Dickens - Rochester
Charles Dickens Centre - Rochester
Frances Hodgson Burnett's Great Maytham Hall - Rolvenden
Lamb House, home of Henry James - Rye

HAMPSHIRE
*Chawton House, Home of Jane Austen - Alton
William Cobbett, walking trail - Selborne
Charles Dickens Birthplace - Portsmouth

LONDON

*The Charles Dickens House Museum
*Shakespeare's Globe Theater (reconstruction) (pictured)

NOTINGHAMSHIRE
*Sherwood Forest - Edwinstowe

OXFORDSHIRE
Mapledurham House [John Galsworthy, Kenneth Graham & Alexander Pope] - Mapledurham
Alice's Shop, inspiration for Lewis Carrol - Oxford
Thames River, inspiration for Lewis Carrol - Oxford
The Eagle & Child Pub, haunt of C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkein – Oxford

SOMERSET
*Jane Austen Centre - Bath

EAST SUSSEX

*Bateman's, home of Rudyard Kipling - Burwash (pictured)
*Pooh Corner, inspiration for A.A. Milne - Hartfield
*Ashdown Forest (A.A. Milne's 100 Acre Wood) - Hartfield
Monk's House, retreat of Virginia Woolf - Lewes

WARWICKSHIRE
*Shakespeare's Birthplace - Stratford-Upon-Avon (pictured)
*Anne Hathaway's Cottage (Shakespeare's wife) - Stratford-Upon-Avon
*Hall's Croft (home of Shakespeare's daughter) - Stratford-Upon-Avon
*Mary Arden's House (Shakespeare's mother) - Stratford-Upon-Avon (pictured)
*New Place, Shakespeare's retirement house - Stratford-Upon-Avon

YORKSHIRE
*Bronte Parsonage Museum - Haworth

Literary Destinations in the United States

2009-10-22T21:50:00.018-05:00

Several years ago, I got it in my head to start a website (this was before blogging had become mainstream), which I ultimately determined to be more trouble than it was worth. Anyway, part of the site was devoted to literary destinations--primarily homes of famous authors. Visiting these homes combined my passion for literature and travel, and they continue to be favorite destinations of mine. I compiled a list of these locations using travel guides, web browsing, etc. and I thought it was worth posting here as a reference. I've starred the ones I've visited, and included some of my personal photos.
Please feel free to comment if you know of a site that is missing. My goal is to compile the most comprehensive list possible. However, please note that this is a list of sites which are open to the public--this seems obvious, but someone once contributed a photo he'd taken of a current bestselling author's private home, something I do not want to encourage!

UNITED STATES

ALABAMA
*F. Scott & Zelda Fitzgerald Museum - Montgomery, AL (pictured)
Helen Keller Birthplace: Ivy Green - Tuscumbia, AL

ARKANSAS
The [Ernest] Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum - Piggott, AR

CALIFORNIA
Zane Grey's The Pueblo - Avalon, CA
Robinson Jeffer's Tor House - Carmel, CA
Jack London State Historic Park - Glen Ellen, CA
John Muir National Historic Site - Martinez, CA
Eugene O'Neill's Tao House - Danville, CA
Will Rogers Historic Park - Pacific Palisades, CA
John Steinbeck's Birthplace & Boyhood Home - Salinas, CA
Robert Louis Stevenson House - Monterey, CA
The Silverado Museum: Robert Louis Stevenson memorabilia collection - St. Helena, CA
Mark Twain Cabin - Sonora, CA

CONNECTICUT
Eugene O'Neill's Monte Cristo Cottage - New London, CT
*Harriet Beecher Stowe House & Center - Hartford, CT
*Mark Twain House - Hartford, CT (pictured)
*Noah Webster House - Hartford, CT

FLORIDA
Robert Frost Cottage - Key West, FL
Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum - Key West, FL
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings State Historic Site - Cross Creek, FL

GEORGIA

*Joel Chandler Harris' The Wren's Nest - Atlanta, GA (pictured)
Uncle Remus Museum - Eatonon, GA
Sidney Lanier Cottage - Macon, GA
*Margaret Mitchell House & Museum - Atlanta, GA

IDAHO
Ezra Pound Birthplace - Hailey, ID

ILLINOIS
Ernest Hemingway Birthplace - Oak Park, IL
Vachel Lindsay Home - Springfield, IL
Edgar Lee Masters Memorial Museum - Petersburg, IL
Carl Sandburg Historic Site - Galesburg, IL

INDIANA
James Whitcomb Riley Birthplace & Childhood Home - Greenfield, IN
*James Whitcomb Riley's Lockerbie Home - Indianapolis, IN
Gene Stratton-Porter's Limberlost - Geneva, IN
Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site, Limberlost North - Rome City, IN

LOUISIANA
Kate Chopin House - Cloutierville, LA

MAINE
Sarah Orne Jewett House - South Beswick, ME
Henry Wadsworth-Longfellow House - Portland, ME

MARYLAND
*Edgar Allan Poe House & Museum - Baltimore, MD

MASSACHUSETTS

*William Cullen Bryant Homestead - Cummington, MA
*Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House - Concord, MA
*Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Wayside - Concord, MA
*Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Old Manse - Concord, MA
*Nathaniel Hawthorne's Little Red House - Lenox, MA
*Nathaniel Hawthorne's Birthplace - Salem, MA
*Nathaniel Hawthorne's House of Seven Gables - Salem, MA (pictured)
*Emily Dickinson Homestead - Amherst, MA
*Herman Melville's Arrowhead - Pittsfield, MA
*Henry David Thoreau's Walden Pond - Concord, MA
*Henry Wadsworth-Longfellow National Historic Site - Cambridge, MA
*The Mount, home of Edith Wharton's The Mount - Lenox, MA (pictured)
John Greenleaf Whittier Home - Amesbury, MA
John Greenleaf Whittier Homestead - Haverhill, MA

MINNESOTA
Sinclair Lewis Boyhood Home - Sauk Center, MN
Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum - Walnut Grove, MN

MISSISSIPPI
William Faulkner's Rowan Oak - Oxford, MI
William Johnson House - Natchez, MI

MISSOURI
Eugene Field House - St. Louis, MO
Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum - Hannibal, MO
Laura Ingalls Wilder Home - Mansfield, MO

NEBRASKA
Bess Streeter Aldrich House & Museum - Elmwood, NE
Willa Cather Childhood Home - Red Cloud, NE

NEW HAMPSHIRE
Robert Frost Farm -Derry, NH
Robert Frost Home & Museum - Franconia, NH

NEW JERSEY

*Walt Whitman House - Camden, NJ (pictured)

NEW MEXICO
D.H. Lawrence Home - Taos, NM

NEW YORK
William Cullen Bryant's Cedarmere - Roslyn Harbor (Long Island), NY
*Washington Irving's Sunnyside - Tarrytown, NY
Christopher Morley's Writing Studio, The Knothole - Roslyn, NY
Edgar Allan Poe Cottage - Bronx, NY
Robert Louis Stevenson Memorial Cottage - Saranac Lake, NY
Walt Whitman Birthplace - Huntington Station, NY

NORTH CAROLINA
Carl Sandburg Home - Flat Rock, NC
Thomas Wolfe Memorial - Asheville, NC

OHIO
Paul Laurence Dunbar House - Dayton, OH
*Harriet Beecher Stowe House - Cincinnati, OH

OKLAHOMA
Will Rogers Birthplace - Oologah, OK
Sequoyah's Homesite - Sallisaw, OK
Laura Ingalls Wilder Surveyor-s House - De Smet, SD

PENNSYLVANIA

Pearl S. Buck House - Perkasie, PA
Zane Grey Museum - Lackawaxen, PA
*Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site - Philadelphia, PA (pictured)

TENNESSEE
Thomas Hughes' Kingston Lisle - Rugby, TN

VERMONT
Rowland Evans Robinson's Rokeby Museum - Ferrisburg, VT

VIRGINIA
Edgar Allan Poe Museum - Richmond, VA
Anne Spencer House - Lynchberg, VA

WEST VIRGINIA
Pearl S. Buck Birthplace - Hillsboro, WV

Disney World Pick Up Lines

2009-06-26T16:45:00.003-05:00

So, my sister-in-law sent me an e-mail in which she mentioned how several years ago she was actually able to get into Cinderella's Royal Table at Disney World. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, this is a meal where the characters visit with guests while they eat. What makes it so popular is that it's the princesses and princes who aside from being popular with the kiddies, are "face characters" meaning they don't wear masks and can therefore talk to guests. It's also the restaurant inside the castle. There are complex strategies in guide books to score a table.
Anyway, my sister-in-law remarked that when she went Cinderella's Prince (Prince Charming?) commented to her that she was so pretty he mistook her for Snow White. Some Prince, trying to pick up women while his wife was in the room. Or was he having a fling with Snow behind Cindy's back? It reminded me of the fabulous Stephen Sondheim musical Into the Woods which interweaves several classic fairy tales. The first act ends with Happily Ever After, and the second act is what comes next, including Cinderella and Rapunzel's princes philandering off to pursue Snow White and Sleeping Beauty.
Anyway, I started to think how if these princes were real, they'd likely be using these character meals to cash in on their fame and pick up attractive guests. Which led to my imagining....

The Top 10 Pick Up Lines Heard at Walt Disney World

1. "Is this your shoe? It looks like a perfect fit."

2. "Me Tarzan, you gorgeous!"

3. "You know, I'm part god."

4. "Are you a mermaid? Because you've been swimming through the ocean of my dreams all night."

5. (attempts kiss) "Oh, excuse me! I thought you were asleep because you're so beautiful."

6. "Wow! I just rubbed this lamp, made a wish, and here...you...are!"

7. "...I'm twitterpated...."

8. "I'm actually much better looking than this--let me show you how to break the spell."

9. "Was your daddy a pirate? Because someone stole the second star to the right and put it in your eyes."

10. "I'm the eighth dwarf--Sexy."

Feel free to post your own in the comments (just please keep them relatively clean).

Confessions of a Book Addict

2009-05-25T11:00:00.008-05:00

So here it is, nearly halfway through the year, and all I've done is update my 'Latest Books Read,' 'Favorite Photo,' and 'What I'm Currently Listening To' lists, the latter of which is now outdated again. The trouble is I really don't listen to CDs anymore--I listen to individual songs thanks to the advent of the iPod.
I have been spending a lot of time on my photography, in fact I just got back from an impromptu trip to Huntsville, Alabama. A photographer at a photo safari session at the Nashville Zoo last weekend recommended the butterfly garden there. I was rather disappointed that though they had a large exhibit, I only saw three very common species--Monarch, Zebra Longwing, and Julia. It was still a nice getaway. The people there were very friendly, more saying "hello" as we passed than not.
I went to a popular outdoor mall to find dinner, but being a holiday weekend everywhere had a long line, so I ended up having a sandwich at the Starbucks in Barnes & Noble. Of course, I couldn't go to a bookstore and leave empty handed, I I must give myself credit for putting back two of the three books I was going to buy and settling on Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, which I never read in school. I finished it last night, which put me back on track with my 52-book quota.
Last year I had a goal to read 52 books (a book a week) but didn't quite make it because I changed the rules in November to not counting books I didn't finish. This year I'm on target, with twenty books to date. If I counted the books I didn't finish, I'd be at thirty. Partly, I'm doing it because it inspires me to spend more time reading and less time channel surfing. But I also have a more practical issue. I've run out of bookshelf space and space for more bookshelves.
When I moved from New York, I remember the guy who came to give me an estimate. I'd already started packing, and he looked at the neat stacks of small but numerous boxes.
"What's in all those?"
"Books."
"All of 'em?"
"I like to read." He glanced at the six-foot bookcase with doubled rows, not an inch between the spines.
"I've only had time to pack the mass markets," I commented. He looked over to where a mirrored curio shelf I'd picked up at the antique store down the street had been commandeered to hold history and etiquette books.
"You know, it's going to cost you a fortune to move all these books." He eyed the double glass-doored cabinet from Ikea full of hardcovers and over sized art books that towered above his height.
"A lot of those are signed," I said.
He grunted dubiously.
"But these are all the books," I said confidently, thinking he was overreacting. There weren't that many, and I'd limited them to the living room. The whole apartment was only 500 square feet, so the quantity just seemed a lot relative to the small space. I once stayed at an apartment in the city where you couldn't see the color of the walls for the bookshelves. Every room--the bathroom, the kitchen, above the door frames--was nothing but bookshelves. It was book-lover heaven!
He moved into the kitchen and began to poke around in the cabinets. Food, dishes, glasses, an entire cabinet full of cookbooks over the fridge. I don't cook much, but I always mean to learn. He shook his head.
"Oh, right, forgot those were there," I said, chagrined.
He went into the bedroom. Seven or so books mocked me from the nightstand. Well, those obviously didn't count, those were the books I was in the middle of reading. Those would go in the car with me. He opened the cabinet built into the dresser. Sweaters shelf, sweater shelf, music book shelf, music book shelf. Well, the stereo was in the bedroom, and it's not like I had room for a piano. His critical eyes slid across the line of dictionary, reference, and writing books lined up on the top shelf of my desk above my computer.
"Those are for work," I noted.
He opened the closet. Work clothes, shoes...a plastic crate on its side full of books too tall for the shelves.
He sighed. "You're really going to pay a fortune to move all of these. You need to get rid of at least half of them."
Get rid of half my books? Was he crazy?
"But I already did. I got rid of as many as I could." I had lugged several boxes off a few weeks before to donate to the church fair booksale. Of course, I worked the book sale and ended up bringing some home, but not as many as I gave.
"At least half," he repeated.
As he left, I mentally ran through the shelves. What else could I get rid of? The books I had worked on as an editorial assistant and associate editor, some of which had my name in the acknowledgments? The classics I fell in love with and the museum art books I'd bought as souvenirs and I'd carried home from a summer in Spain, paying for a third suitcase for the purpose. The complete works of Hemingway, Wharton, and Fitzgerald I'd accumulated during an internship at Simon & Schuster, and the collections in progress of other classic authors. The library of mysteries and romances in mass market already culled and boxed that I used to study the genres for work. The cookbooks, and history, reference and biography. Books that were recommended, books that were gifts, books that sparked my interest in a store, at a library sale, on the giveaway shelf at work. There were no more I could part with. I didn't care how much it cost.
Desperate, I called my good friend Kristine, a fellow book lover and the only person I know who can outlast me at a bookstore.
"Why don't we stop for hot chocolate now?" I asked her once, after we'd been browsing for over an hour.
"But we haven't even gotten to history and biography yet," she replied, soldiering on. Kristine is as big a book collector as I am, a lawyer turned high school teacher, she's one of the smartest and most educated people I know with a constant thirst for knowledge. Kristine will browse the bargain section, picking up any book that catches her interest, reading the copy and skimming the first few pages, and issuing a verdict. She inspired me to read more broadly, not just in my favorite genres. She was, of course, completely sympathetic as I explained what the literaphobic moving guy had said.
"There's an underfunded school I know of," she said. "The library doesn't have any money for new books, and the librarians are desperate for donations."
Kristine came over the following weekend with her jeep to help me weed the shelves again. I picked up each book and asked myself three questions.
"Can I visualize myself reading this book in the next two years? Does this copy have sentimental value? Would I be unable to easily find another copy?" If the answer to all three questions was no, it went in the donation pile. Many of the classics went--it's easy to find those and I never get around them--they require time to think, absorb, and savor that I just don't have. A lot of the nonfiction went. A fair amount of literary fiction too by authors I hadn't had a chance to learn to like. It was easier to think that instead of collecting dust on my shelves, these books would be read and loved by others. That a teen might discover a passion for a subject, or author, or just reading in general from one of these copies. Books are meant to be read, they're not decor despite what the magazines might suggest.
We ended up filling Kristine's jeep with boxes of books, and in exchange for her help she had her pick of the litter and set aside a stack of those that interested her, or that she could use for her own class.
It still cost me a relative fortune to move, but when I arrived in Tennessee I had glorious shelf space to fill again--and an apartment twice the size of the old one. Ah, the freedom to accumulate new books! Within two years I had run out of space again. Now I have shelves of children's books for when my nephew visits, and a shelf of memoir and a shelf of travel essays--two of my latest favorite genres.
And so began the goal to read as many as I could, and donate those I read and wouldn't read again to make room for more. I tried making a rule that for every five books I got rid of, I could buy one new book. The next day I bought five without getting rid of one. If books were harmful, there would probably be a support group for people like me. But since they're as good for you as exercise and vegetables, I guess I'll have to suffer in contentment. And get back to reading--I just pulled a new book off the shelf.

Traffic Etiquette

2008-12-15T20:27:00.006-06:00

Okay, I admit, this is going to be a bit of a rant, but I think it's one you'll want to rant along with me. Along with the festive holiday season, there is always festive holiday traffic, and it seems to bring out the worst in drivers despite the spirit of the season. Compound the holiday rush with icy roads and traffic-snarling accidents caused by the combination of the two, and you begin to understand why people suffer from road rage. Embracing my newly recognized Southerness, I am trying to embrace a zen-like acceptance as I sit staring at the same taillights, listening to favorite songs that are beginning to get old on my iPod. Zen is not an easy state to achieve, though. And I blame Sparky, Righty, Speedy, and Scavenger.
If we could all just accept that we're in this together, apply the golden rule, and be patient I think never ending traffic would not just be more tolerable, but there would be a little less of it. But what really irritates me is when you try to do unto others, only to find still others taking advantage--namely the aforementioned four. I know you know them, but let me be polite and introduce you properly as we review four breaches of traffic etiquette.
1. Blocking the Box - So, you're crawling along, a car length every three minutes, and finally can glimpse the anticipated traffic light where you plan to take a right onto the main road. There are maybe five cars ahead of you and you watchi in anticipation as the light turns green. But you don't move. Okay, you think, it takes a moment to clear the intersection. A minute goes by, you crane your neck, still no movement. Now it's yellow. Not even a little roll forward. And it's red again, and you at last inch half a car length forward. Repeat sequence. Repeat again. Now there's just two cars in front of you and you can see what's happening. The oncoming traffic is crawling along. Their light turns yellow, they keep moving despite the fact that the traffic ahead has stopped. Their light turns red with one car blocking half the intersection, stuck at the end of a frozen line of cars stretching as far as the eye can see. Now Sparky at the light to your left decides she has waited long enough and if she can get over that thick white line right after the light turns, she hasn't gone through it. Sparky couldn't possibly slam on the brakes at half a mile an hour on these icy roads. So she moves into the intersection, completing the wall of cars running perpendicularly to you. Naturally, the carefully timed lights all along your destination road have turned red. So there you are, at your green light with nowhere to go. The light turns yellow, and the frustrated car two ahead of you rolls halfway into the intersection. As your light turns red, Sparky rolls merrily forward, and your leader crams herself behind. One small victory for your road. Now you know why it has taken 20 minutes to go 1/4 of a mile. Etiquette Lesson: If there is not a physical space for your car on the other side of the intersection, you wait at the light, whether it is green, yellow, red, or purple! In New York city, it's a law--should be national.

2. Taking Turns - So, while you're waiting at the interminable light, a car coming along the blissfully clear opposite lane stops and indicates that he would like to take a left turn in front of you to the cross street street to your right. Being a polite driver, and having no rush to speed along the whopping (but hard-earned) two car lengths between you and the bumper you've been staring at, you press down on the brake, smile at Lefty, and wave him across. He gives a grateful wave, and scoots happily by you. You feel a little good that at least someone is getting somewhere. But you weren't paying attention to Righty, the car to your right who has now wedged his car into the line ahead of you as Lefty was making his move. Well, you think, looking at the two Rightys behind him, taking turns is reasonable, even if I've been waiting twenty minutes, and he's been waiting two. But wait, what's this? Righty #2 is tailgating, shoving into line right behind Righty #1. It's a fundamental traffic rule of etiquette--every other car. If everyone observes this, it all works more efficiently.

3. The Merging Lane - So, at last you have made it to the main road and reached the pinnacle of the traffic snarl--the highway exit ramp where four lanes of cars have come to a near standstill, and about half seem to have given up and are abandoning the fast lane for your lane. You eventually find yourself next to the merging lane, and following the taking turns rule, you allow the car nearest you in front. You creep forward, and creep forward some more. Maybe you even let a second car in. You've all sped up to a relatively rapid two miles an hour now. Though the lane to your right is oh-so-temptingly clear, you know that lane ends ahead. At least you're finally moving. But wait--you've stopped again. You're waiting. Waiting. Still not moving. Waiting. Flipping the radio station. Waiting. Watching the guy in the car next to you--is he talking to himself, or does he have one of those little earpieces? Waiting.... And then along comes Speedy. Speedy is briskly rolling along that clear merging lane to your right. He is going to get as far along as possible before indicating, while all his fellow highwaymen (and -women) have politely merged as soon as possible to share your lot. You do not want to let Speedy in. Speedy should have to sit and wait as long as it takes you (and everyone else) to get to that point. Say, about ten minutes. If it weren't for Speedy and his brethren, it would only take you five minutes to get to where he is. Speddy stole your consistent two-mile-an-hour pace! "Don't let him in!" you yell (as the guy beside you tries to figure out if you're talking to yourself, or on one of those earpiece things). But, of course, Good Samaritan is twenty car lengths ahead and can't hear you. He lets Speedy in almost immediately. So you bare your teeth as the Speedys zip past. Traffic etiquette rule #3: just because the lane is clear, doesn't mean you should use it to the inconvenience of dozens of others.

4. Parking Space Lotto - So, you've made it to the mall parking garage at last, and find yourself scanning for shoppers heading for their cars. But, of course, there are parking predators everywhere, and you soon find yourself slowly easing along behind two other cars. At least there's only one lane up, and one lane down, so all you have to do is bide your time, and keep easing into the bowels of the garage. The third free space will be mine, you think. That's not so bad, after all the traffic. Car #1 gets lucky, and spots a a pair of taillights just as she's about to pass. She slams on her brakes, backs up immediately without looking, then indicates to claim her territory. You stop, glance in the rearview at the line of cars behind you who luckily didn't rear end you, and wait patiently as the shopper backs efficiently out of the space so Car #1 can park. Now I'm second in line, you think gleefully. I've almost made it! Not only that, but while you were waiting, another shopper has returned to her car, kids in tow, and Car #2 (just in front of you) moves briskly forward and flips on his blinker. The Mom puts the bags away, secures the kids in the backseat, returns to the trunk for something, digs lint out of her purse for awhile. You sigh, but take solace in the fact that the next space is yours. I'm next! Mom finally climbs into the driver's seat, but still doesn't move (you speculate she's picking a radio station, and maybe touching up her driving make-up). But in the darkness you see a glimmer of good news--taillights! Beckoning to you. That's my space! And it's right near the elevators! What luck! But wait...all of a sudden a car is passing on your left! One of the cars behind you has pulled around and plans to claim your space. And there is nothing you can do. Mom is backing up and slams on her brakes as Scavenger drives past, swerves around the oncoming car that has just left your space, and slides neatly in. Mom starts backing again, more cautiously. But Scavenger is a trendsetter, and now another car is passing. Then another. Finally, Mom gets out of the space, car #2 gets into it. You are next again, but there is no joy in it. The Scavengers shoved you down the list, usurping what was rightfully yours. Final traffic etiquette rule for today: you are not the only one waiting, your needs are not greater than anyone else's--wait your turn!

I'm only listing four because these are all things that happened to me in the last four days. Feel free to vent your own traffic etiquette faux pas experiences in the Comments, though. It is therapeutic!

I Think I'm Becoming Southern

2008-12-12T20:28:00.003-06:00

I grew up in New England--Connecticut to be precise. You really don't get much more Yankee than that. Sure, I had a few Southern tendencies--I like iced tea with lots of sugar, but I always drank it the Northern way, sucking up the undissolved granules from the bottom of the glass with a straw. I didn't know such a thing as "sweet tea" existed until I came to Tennessee for college.

In addition to opening my eyes to the idea of sweetening tea while it's hot, and then adding the ice so the sugar is melted in, I picked up the handy second person plural. After all, I studied Spanish which has not one but two tenses, ustedes for formal and vosotros for informal. The closest Yankee English has is the sexist you guys and I suppose you could argue that the phrase you all is the ustedes of English. But, as we all know, the Southerners have y'all.

I took this phrase with me when I left the South for my first job in New York. I also brought a stack of country music CDs (mostly Reba McEntire). Back up North, I resigned myself to once again adding sugar packets to iced tea (you know you've crossed from South to North when you order a "sweet tea" and the waitress replies, "Well...we have iced tea. And sugar.")

Being in the college bubble, I did not absorb nearly as much Southern culture as I have since I moved back to Tennessee about four years ago. I realized it last week when a new coworker was telling an anecdote about a friend, and commented, "He doesn't have nearly as strong a Southern accent as I do." I was surprised to realize I hadn't noticed my coworker had an accent at all. My eyes are open to all the ways I have become Southern. When I first moved from New York, I couldn't bring myself to go to the local deli, because when I ordered:
"ARoastBeefOnWhiteWithLettuceTomatoMustardOnionsNoMayo" they didn't start throwing it together before I got to Tomato. Instead, the man behind the counter would wait a moment, and then say,
"What kind of bread?"
"White. Roast beef, lettuce, tomato, onions, mustard."
"Wait, roast beef....what do you want on it?"
Having spent six years spoiled by New York delis, it all seemed agonizingly slow. But now, I go to that same deli once a week and enjoy the calm pace.

Instead of studiously ignoring the lady idly chitchatting with the waitress while we both waited for our take-out orders at the Chinese restaurant this evening, I struck up a conversation about Oprah's weight, and why kitchens are bigger and more open than they used to be.

I like to eat barbecue--I even ate my pork barbecue sandwich today despite the fact that they left off the sauce and added cole slaw. I also know that's a regional difference (though I'm not Southern enough yet to know what regions).

When I arrived at work this morning I saw a man crossing the lobby in plaid pants, and my internal voice said, "Now that's just not right, right there." Putting aside the fact that Yankees don't generally wear plaid pants unless they're golfing (and there aren't many golf courses in midtown Manhattan), I tried to dismiss this sign, blaming it on the fact that I was listening to a Lewis Grizzard comedy routine on my commute in. Then I realized--I was listening to Lewis Grizzard. I was even laughing as he made jokes at the expense of Yankees and Georgia football!

Football. I've actually started watching this season, since my alma mater started winning. I actually care what's going on, and yell at the screen when I watch it on TV. I also have knowledge that I probably don't need. I know why restrictor plates are controversial in NASCAR. I can name most of the current members of the Grand Ole Opry--as well as many of those who aren't current (and I have most of them on my iPod). I know cornbread dressing is not something you put on salad. I eat at meat-and-threes.

And I still drink sweet tea pretty much daily--I guess I haven't changed that much.

Music Album Memories

2008-10-07T18:41:00.005-05:00

I was at the main library last week, browsing through the music collection when I came across a CD that was familiar, though I never knew it existed. When I was young I remember very little of the flight to Australia to visit my relatives other than that I apparently didn't have a Walkman and so was forced to select from the channels offered by the airline, plugging those horrid ear clamps with the little foam plugs on the ends. There was only one channel of interest to an eight-year-old girl, and it featured a selection of current pop hits. I listened to the same ten songs over and over and over, for hour after hour. Back then the whole trip, along with layovers, took something like forty-eight hours door to door. We flew from New York to LA, and from there to Sydney with a fuel stop in Fiji, then on a small plane to Wagga Wagga (which is just fun to say) and then it was another two hours by car to the small town where my Nana lived, and an hour beyond that to the family Sheep Station. It was that long leg from the US to Australia that these songs were burned into my memory. I don't think it's odd for a song to bring back memories, but it was this specific collection.
As you may have guessed, last week I found it: Billboard Top Hits 1983. I fell in love with Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse of the Heart," "Down Under" by Men at Work is probably why they selected this collection. I remember "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" by Air Supply, "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" by Culture Club, "Electric Avenue" by Eddy Grant, "Africa" by Toto, "Maniac" by Michael Sembello, "Stray Cat Strut" by Stray Cats...but here's the odd thing. There's one song, "Jeopardy" by Greg Kihn Band that I have absolutely no memory of. All the others are so memorable. I also vaguely remember discovering an Australian singer named Jason Donovan, and I think it was also on the plane playlist. Maybe they replaced "Jeopardy" with one of his songs?
Anyway, it got me to thinking of the albums that I connect with certain fond memories. En Vogue's "Funky Divas" was the first tape I played in my first car, a gun mental gray Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme with a dent down one side--I added a matching dent to the other side when I drove too close to a low stone wall a month after I got my license. It was the first time I drove with my friends in the car (my parents were right to make me wait to drive with anyone else, though apparently I should have waited longer). The Reality Bites soundtrack tape on a cheap Walkman entertained me on the plane ride to and from Peru when I was in college (Lisa Loeb's "Stay" was my favorite track). Then there was the Original Cast Album of Titanic, The Musical that I blasted on the new sound system of my first new car, a 1997 Honda Accord. I think I might have to use it again for testing out sound systems when I shop for my next car, both for nostalgia and because there's great range in some of the songs. Some albums just shine on a great sound system for some reason, and though this isn't one of my particular favorites in general, it serves this purpose.
As I thought over the memorable albums, I realized they all came at the beginning of a new experience or journey, and all had to do with travel. Some books are like that as well, though are usually part of the journey. I remember, when I spent a summer studying in Spain, stumbling upon a drugstore in Madrid selling Penguin Classics just when I was starved for a fresh book in my native tongue. I devoured Rudyard Kipling's Kim while fielding questions from my baffled roommate, an Econ major from Texas, with monosyllabic responses: "So, you don't have to read that." "No." "It's not for class?" "No." "But it's a classic?" "Yes." "But you don't have to read it." "No." "So, why are you?" "Because it's good." "But it's a classic." "Yes." I swear, we had this same exchange at least a dozen times as I discovered other favorites: plays by Oscar Wilde, and Anthony Trollope's Lady Anna being the most memorable. That was also the summer I read my first romance novel, Surrender My Love by Johanna Lindsey, which was left by a previous boarder--I'd never finished a book that thick that fast, and I couldn't put it down. Two summers and many romances later I would read Once and Always in England just after graduating college, and within a month of returning I'd land my first job working with its author, Judith McNaught, as an editorial assistant to a romance editor. All those years studying classics, only to find I should have been reading romance to prepare for my career!
Memory is a funny thing. I can't help but wonder what books and albums will capture a period or a change in my life next....

Computer Society

2008-09-21T09:59:00.006-05:00

It's interesting how so many "experts" of the past have said that people are less social because of technology. I suppose that was true a few years ago, but not so much now. Last Monday I finally got on Facebook, and found dozens of friends I'd lost touch with over the years. It's addictive, and yet an efficient way to keep in touch with a lot of people in a way one never could via letters, or phone calls, or even e-mail.

Speaking of the latter, when I started my career the phones rang constantly, but now it's the e-mail in box that fills up at an alarming rate. I don't even have a physical in box on my desk anymore. Agents send proposals, and authors submit their manuscripts for editing electronically. 90% of my submissions are read on a Sony E-Reader. I still edit on hard copy, but transfer my changes to a Word document with track changes. I do have one author who does not own a computer. He doesn't know anything of the culture (blogs, message boards, :), IMing, etc.). He wouldn't have been much of anomaly even a few years ago, but working on his book at times has been a bit like going through your usual day with one arm tied behind your back--not unlike when we have a power failure and all productivity ceases. I've had to use the archaic fax machine, mail hard copies of covers and manuscripts, and talk on the phone with him daily. I don't know that it is that much less efficient than using the computer--in a way it's a bit nostalgic. This is how it was for most when I started in publishing ten years ago, but I can't help but wonder if ten years from now people will be at a loss as to how to communicate with someone without a computer.

Yesterday morning I went to a photo session at the Nashville Zoo--a bit of a mixed bag in terms of the shots, as it was overcast, the subjects (chinchilla, skunk, kinkajou, two-toed sloth, and serval--which was gorgeous, like a living Egyptian statue) moved a lot, and my camera, I'm realizing, is pretty basic. The zoo was crawling with photographers, not just because of the 15 people in the session I was there for. Apparently there was a photography class present, and another group of at least 30 people all in matching blue shirts and toting high-end cameras. I suspect the current fuel shortages kept a lot of other folks away. But it was great to have so many photographers around as I was able to start asking questions about upgrading to a new camera. One man recommended the Cannon Rebel or Cannon D40 as a good reasonably-priced intermediary between amateur and professional--he let me try his, which had a telephoto lens he was trying out that was about half the length of my arm. The shots were so much better than mine, though, even on the small display. Another man praised his Pentex for it's built in stability control and attached back-up battery. Last weekend, many had Nikons, though I didn't ask about the features. I still have a lot to learn about what to look for in a camera (I'm starting to grasp the meaning of aperture and shutter speed, but still working on how to use them). Thanks to my new Meet-ups groups I have access to 300+ local photographers from whom I can seek advice via the message board. So oddly, the very thing that once isolated people has become the thing that facilities society. I wonder how I could not believe that, though. I am writing a blog.

Photography Meet-up at the TN State Fair

2008-09-14T18:59:00.003-05:00

A while back I was chatting with my colleagues about how difficult it is to make new friends as adults outside of work, particularly when you move to a new city as most of us have. Which is why we've all began using the Web site http://www.meetups.com./ It's a site where you can find other people who share your hobby or interest in your area, and get together. One of my colleagues invited me to join her at her jewelry making Meet up a few months ago, and I learned how to make silver clay jewelry. I really enjoyed it, but I do so many different arts and crafts already, the last thing I need is to add jewelry making.

What I am interested in developing (no pun intended) is photography. And it just so happens that there is a Meet-up group of over 300 photographers in the area. I went to my first meeting yesterday at the Tennessee State Fair. I had been to the fair last year on my own--having never been to a state fair of any kind I couldn't resist. But this time I was focused (I swear, I'm not trying to do these puns) on taking photos.

It's interesting how the standard conversational questions can morph when you get a group of people with a single interest in common. For this group it was, "What are you shooting with?" My reply was, "Um, just this little Kodak." Everyone else said letters and numbers, like we were playing Bingo--or rather, "Dingo" since they were all "D-70" or "D-32." So, we were all standing in a circle--and I happened to be the only woman there--and just before heading out, the nine men of the group brought out these huge cameras from their camera bags, each one with a bigger lens than the one before. And there was I, with my dinky Easyshare Z7590 in my purse. I think of it as my "big" camera, and it is, compared to my pocket size Cannon PowerShot SD850 IS. But I was not going to be intimidated. And just as we were leaving, an older woman drove up. So not only was I no longer the only female, she had a regular 35 mm camera smaller than mine.

We started out shooting the Midway, and as usual I tried for photos of the rides without people in them. I mentioned that later, to the surprise of my companions. And after seeing some of their great shots of people, I think I might have to try that subject. As you may have noticed from my photos on this blog, I'm more interested in animals. So we moved up the hill to the livestock exhibition (the group was very patient as I tried to get one last shot of a chicken who wouldn't stay still), and checked out the photography exhibit as well where we were able to cool off in the air conditioning.

The highlights of the day was seeing my first (and hopefully last) eating competition. It was 2 pm, and we hadn't stopped for lunch, which turned out to be just as well because this was the nastiest thing I've seen in recent memory. There was a 100-pound woman (I know, because the MC kept telling us) who just stuffed Krystal burgers in her mouth while it was still full, getting food all over her face. Surprisingly, most of the contestants weren't obese, but rather very muscular. There was one huge man, however, from New York who was apparently the favorite. But my favorite was a mild-looking man on the end who spent the competition calmly dipping his burgers in Kool-aid and taking methodical, neat bites, as if he was just eating his regular lunch. Maybe he was....

I'll upload the rest of the photos to my Webshots page, in case you're interested.

Why Are Adults Reading Kids’ Books?

2008-09-07T11:49:00.007-05:00

A few years ago, when I was working in New York City, I observed the following conversation between two New York executives on the commuter train into New York:
“Hi Phil, I haven’t seen you in a while.”
“Hello, Jeff. Good to see you.”
“What’s that you’re reading?”
“Oh, it’s Harry Potter.”
“Uh, I thought that was a kids’ book.”
“No, it’s not just for kids. Adults are reading it too!”
What was particularly unique about this scene was that it wasn’t—a few months later, I observed the near identical scene with two different commuters.
Harry Potter was a phenomenon—a rare series that entertained all ages. But the trend it started didn’t end with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight series has taken over, even if on a lesser scale. My sister-in-law told me of a fan Web site exclusively for mothers who are fans of the books. The Young Adult category, one of the most lucrative in publishing today, has become the equivalent of family films like those produced by Disney/Pixar. Appropriate for children, but equally entertaining for and beloved by adults--with and without kids.
So, did Harry Potter launch a whole new movement in literature? No, it relaunched one. This same phenomenon happened a long time ago with another British series that captivated readers of all ages around the world. In 1837 the first British novel to feature a child as a protagonist was published. The author not only introduced the idea of novels about children, but had also pioneered the concept of series publication with his first novel—intially publishing it three chapters at a time, and ending each segment with a cliffhanger. Like Harry, the child in this novel was a British orphan in dismal circumstances who gets caught up in a world that is foreign to him and leads him into mortal danger. His name was Oliver Twist. Oliver Twist was Charles Dickens’ second novel, and every novel he wrote after it centrally featured a sick, mistreated, or dying child.* While his books were written for an adult audience, Dickens lay the groundwork for a new genre, which was followed by authors like Mark Twain. We now think of Dickens and Twain as “classic” authors to be studied, but if they were publishing these books today, they would likely fall under the Young Adult category.
So the idea of adults reading books featuring children as protagonists is not new, but why has it become popular again? I think there are a number of reasons.
1. Taboo—the success of Harry has made it acceptable for adults to read “children’s” books.
2. Time--they're faster reads—with limited leisure time, and competition for that time from other sources, a book you can finish in a day or two is appealing.
3. Values--while adult commercial fiction has grown more explicit in an attempt to shock and titillate our over-exposed sensibilities, books for young adults (with some notable exceptions) are a haven for readers who want to escape into a softer world.
4. Creativity—adult commercial fiction is categorized into genres (romance, mystery, western, science fiction) which have guidelines to make them appeal to the broadest possible audience—it’s effective for sales, but it limits creativity. Young adult fiction can mirror adult genres, but I’ve found more originality in those novels lately than in novels aimed at adults.
5. Nostalgia--We may be interested in reading about a veterinarian working in a Depression Era circus (Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen), or Tudor Queen Anne Boleyn (The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory), but we can’t directly identify with those characters. I am not a veterinarian or royalty (as far as I know). The world of adults is so much bigger, yet our paths as adults seem more fixed. But we all can recall the world of childhood, and the endless potential and possible futures. This is why YA books seem more imaginative—they are because the audience they target is open to it. And I think adults want to recapture that feeling of future potential, and the promise of adventures to come.

Here are my two favorite recent young adult series:

The Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld: Uglies, Pretties, Specials, Extras--Westerfeld is excellent—truly innovative in creating a fictional world, and reinventing the first person narrative.

Lois Lowry’s Worlds trilogy: The Giver, Gathering Blue, The Messenger--Lowry won the prestigious Newbery Medal for The Giver. Like Westerfeld's more recent take, or another classic, A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L'Engle which won the Newbery medal in 1963, this series examines alternate realities to expose themes in our current world.

*If you’re interested in learning more about Dickens, the above information was drawn from an audio lecture The Dickens Nobody Knows by Elliot Engel, available at http://www.blogger.com/www.authorsink.com. All of Engel's lectures are entertaining, fascinating and highly recommended.

Road Trip: Indianapolis, Indiana

2008-09-01T11:45:00.006-05:00

Every now and then, particularly on summer weekends, I get the urge to travel. There’s something about a change of scenery and exploring an unfamiliar place that seems to revitalize me. In the past, I’ve done trips to Atlanta, GA; Louisville, KY; Paducah, KY; Chattanooga, TN; Knoxville, TN; and Birmingham, AL, to name a few. My main criteria for choosing a city are: if I can drive there in four hours or less, and if there is something there that I’d find educational or that ties into one of my hobbies. Indianapolis fit the bill.
I left early Friday morning, and arrived in the mid-afternoon at my first site, the Indianapolis Zoo. My latest and most ardent hobby is animal photography, so I’m always drawn to zoos in particular. The Indianapolis Zoo is relatively new, built in the 1990s, and while not huge, it has some unique and modern exhibits that are well laid out so you see animals pretty much continuously in each of the environment-themed areas: Forest, Desert, Savannah, Ocean. Highlights for me were the koalas, on loan from the San Diego zoo, the walruses—unusual for a zoo-- who swam underwater and seemed as interested in us as we were in them, and the lemurs on an island at the zoo center. At one point I noticed the lemurs moving cautiously onto a narrow bridge, retreating several times, until finally bounding lithely across. A closer look through my zoom lens saw the reason why. Lemurs don’t like water to begin with, and there were three turtles sunning themselves on the log that the lemurs had to jump over.
If you’d like to see more of my photos from the Indianapolis Zoo, I’ve posted the best of them in an album on my Webshots page: http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/566122899euRKgf.
The Indianapolis Museum of Art--an impressive modern building set in beautifully landscaped gardens--was my next stop. The museum features art and artifacts from around the world, and had a special exhibit of Egyptian artifacts from the Brooklyn Museum. I particularly enjoyed the fine collection of artwork in the pointillism style pioneered by George Seurat. Like most paintings, you really need to see these in person to fully appreciate them. From a distance they seem uncannily lifelike, but up close you find they’re all dots, not unlike pixels on a TV screen. But what is interesting is the use of color, how an ocean at sunset isn’t made up of blues alone, but of spots of yellows, greens, and oranges as well. My favorite artist using this style is Camille Pissarro (French, 1831-1903). His “The House of the Deaf Woman and the Belfry at Eragny” (1886) was one of my favorite paintings in the museum. The trees look so real, even up close. It’s quite stunning. My other favorite paintings in the collection were “Tidying Up” (1941) by Isabel Bishop (American, 1902-1988) a humorous painting of a woman inspecting her teeth in a compact mirror, and “His Majesty Receives” (1885) by William Holbrook Beard (American, 1824-1900). Beard is known for his satires featuring animals in human attire, and this is of a regal fox in a red ermine-trimmed robe, surrounded by small woodland creatures in business suits. I had never seen Beard’s work before, but will have to seek out more of it.
On Saturday I visited the birthplace of James Whitcomb Riley (1849-1916), the “Hoosier poet,” in Greenfield, IN, just East of Indianapolis. Unless you went to school in Indiana, you may not know of him or his work. On the other hand, you almost definitely are familiar with two of the byproducts of his children’s poetry. During the Civil War, the Riley family took in an orphan named Mary Alice Smith, whom they called Allie for short. Allie worked for her room and board, and named each of the stairs she scrubbed. She also told the Riley children stories of fairies and goblins in the dark cupboard under the stairs. She was only with them about a year or two before moving on, never to be heard from again in Riley’s lifetime. But she made such an impression on James that when he grew up he wrote a poem about her. Unfortunately, when the poem was printed the typesetter made an error, and it was published as “Little Orphant Annie” instead of “Allie.” The poem became hugely popular, and inspired a comic strip, “Little Orphan Annie,” which in turn inspired a musical, Annie, which in turn inspired my favorite childhood movie of the same name. The Rileys’ house was on a main road, and another of Riley’s poems was inspired by the men, some of whom were returning from the war, who passed by. He called it “The Raggedy Man,” and it was the inspiration for the wildly popular dolls (and subsequent franchise) Raggedy Ann and Andy.
While the people I met in Indianapolis were all friendly, polite, and warm, I found the city itself to be most unwelcoming to visitors. The layout is sprawling with no pattern to the streets that allows for easy navigation. Each site seemed to be a half hour away from the previous. But worst of all were the detours. The entry ramp to the highway by my hotel was closed, prompting a long detour. But what was especially irksome was the “detour” for the same highway in Greenfield, which had signs pointing in various directions depending on where you were approaching from, signs that ultimately led to endless roads in the wrong direction. After an hour of trying to follow these detours, I finally found a gas station where I learned that the detour was no longer necessary as the construction had been finished, but only some of the signs had been taken down. All of this is to explain why I wasn’t able to see the Medical History Museum or tour the house where James Whitcomb Riley lived and died in Indianapolis.
I did, however, stop by the Museum of Miniature Houses and Other Collections in Carmel, IN, a charming town north of Indianapolis. When I was a little girl I had a dollhouse--not the Barbie variety, but a serious hobbyist/miniatures-type deal. I never finished it—it’s assembled, and I had bought all the supplies to wire it for electricity, wallpaper, carpet, and furnish it. But I never got beyond the main assembly. I believe it’s still sitting in my parents’ house somewhere. The museum brought back fond memories, and the houses were almost overwhelming in their detail. I would have adored this museum when I was a little girl.
On the drive back, I made stops at the Devonian era fossil beds in Clarksville, Indiana, in the Falls of the Ohio State Park (which doesn’t appear to have any falls, and is not in Ohio—go figure), located beside the I-65 bridge from Indiana to Kentucky. It’s also near one of my favorite Louisville-area stores, Schimpff’s Confectionary in Jeffersonville, IN, which I discovered on another trip earlier this summer. The Schmipff family has been making the most amazing cinnamon hard candy the same way, with the same equipment, since 1891. They also have a traditional soda fountain where they hand-mix Coca Colas the old-fashioned way (much sweeter and more flavorful), and a candy museum. I also drove around the Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest in Clermont, KY. It’s a beautiful park that’s ideal for hiking and biking, before heading home.

Things That Happen in Movies That Rarely Happen in Real Life

2008-08-22T15:08:00.006-05:00

The only explanation for why I put the movie Castle Rock on my Netflix list was my quest. I am forever in search of movies that are gloriously awful. I have given up on movies being good, and so have refined my taste. Very few make that grade. The movie must be awful while earnestly trying to legitimately please it’s audience as a “good” movie—one might describe the result as “unfortunate.” Bring It On: In It to Win It has been the most recent success in the category. Castle Rock is just bad. But I dedicate this blog entry to it because it is a shining example of the topic ‘o the day (see title).
The first thing that happens in movies that rarely happens in real life is dramatic repetition. Oh, yes…dramatic repetition. It’s like vocal italics for the attention-span deficient viewers. Castle Rock had dramatic repetition, yes…dramatic repetition.
The next item is the pause while fleeing. Using Castle Rock once again: Antonio, the illegal Gautamalan immigrant, is lost in the desert with the surly teenage girl-protagonist (whose name I don’t remember, so we’ll call her Surly for short). [Spoiler Alert!] Surly has been bitten by a poisonous snake, and Antonio is running for help when Surly’s rabid dog begins chasing him. Antonio is running (despite his gangrene-infected leg, which we’ll address in a moment). The rabid Alsatian is loping playfully (I mean menacingly) behind him, and gaining. Antonio is—wait, stopping, turning, looking…yep, Rabid the Dog is still chasing him. Antonio starts running again. Oddly, the dog does not then catch up, tackle Antonio to the ground, and bite his face off--but then, this is a family film.
I promised to get to the gangrene, didn’t I? Well, Antonio spends the majority of the movie limping (except when he makes his climactic run for help) because he cut his leg. Along their trek through vast scrub and nothingness, they encounter one item of interest: a dead rabbit being eaten by maggots. Surly comments: “My grandfather once told me maggots only eat dead flesh. They won’t eat living flesh.” You see where this is going? Yes. That’s right. Antonio gets gangrene, and Surly randomly knows the cure: “We need some way to get rid of the dead flesh…” But how? Wait! Yeah, that’s right—maggots! Antonio: “It burns! It burns!!” Maggots: “Mmmphgh.”
In the movies, this is called “set up and payoff.” In real life, it’s called coincidence, but most things we encounter, as you know, do not payoff. For example, yesterday I was tired of my usual bagel and cream cheese, so I swung by Publix for a muffin. But Publix doesn’t sell individual muffins, so I bought four. I ate one. (How many muffins did I have left?) I offered the remaining muffins to my coworkers--no takers. So I am having muffins for breakfast for the next few days. Pretty mundane.
But if my life were a movie, those three muffins would be set up. And here, I theorize, are the payoffs, depending on genre:

Romance: I share the muffins with a devastatingly handsome and eligible man I meet that day, we fall in love, and have blueberry muffin cake at our wedding.

Comedy: I share the muffins with a devastatingly handsome and eligible man I meet that day. His face blows up and he tells me, “Ehm ellergeec ew blooberreez!” We spend the evening in the emergency room.

Suspense: I am stalked by the Muffin Man, a serial killer who targets women who buy muffins. I don’t know why he’s trying to kill me until the police realize the connection between the victims.

Action: I'm an international spy, and each muffin contains a microchip that when united will activate a world-devastating weapon. One by one, my enemies steal my muffins. I must get them back, at any cost!

Horror: The muffins are full of maggots.

Drama: I give the muffins to a homeless woman, and we develop a bond that changes both our lives. But then she dies.

Mystery: I share the muffins, but they turn out to be poisoned. How? Why? And by who? (My money’s on Surly.)

What I Learned Today...About Garbage Disposals

2008-08-16T20:45:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Shoes in the Freezer, Beer in the Flower Garden by Joan & Lydia Wilen (Fireside, 1997) I learned that to clean/degrease a garbage disposal: run the hot water, then slowly pour in a cup of baking soda until it's all gone. To sharpen the blades, put about ten ice cubes in the disposal, run the water, and turn on the unit.
I also learned not to read something once, put the book on the shelf, and try to do it from memory. I learned that multi-tasking leads to potential disaster. So here's how not to do it: Do not dump half a box of Baking Soda into the disposal, then run the hot water, start the disposal, and add the rest of the box for good measure. Do not then decide to clean the ice tray out by dumping the entire contents into the sink, and shoving all the cubes down while running the water. If you do, the disposal will choke and begin to regurgitate nasty, brown, murky water at an alarming rate. However, if you find yourself in this same predicament (there is a 0.027% chance), run the hot water, and eventually the disposal will burp and slurp everything back down.
All's well that ends well, as Will would say. I have fresh ice in the freezer, and my disposal is cleaner and sharper than ever. But maybe next time I'll follow the Wilens' directions....

The Air Museum

2008-08-16T18:37:00.003-05:00

I had a long description of my travel woes written, but I've deleted it, because it was frankly rather boring. I'll sum it up, I was supposed to fly on American Airlines from LaGuardia to Nashville last Sunday. I spent 28 hours in airports over the next three days (the boredom was so bad, I actually resorted to reading passages of Tori Spelling's biography in the bookstore at one point). After my American flight was cancelled three times, I gave up and booked a flight on Southwest out of Hartford. That flight was delayed only fifteen minutes.
But, more importantly, I was able to observe a curious sign by the road just next to the airport. It was one of those brown local attraction signs, and it said simply "Air Museum." Air Museum? A museum of air? I immediately began picturing it, a giant hangar, empty. Just...air. Or better yet, grey carpet, and muted walls surrounding vast rooms full of glass exhibit boxes on pedestals that appeared empty, but were each labeled in painstaking detail.
"This air dates from 1066 England, during the Norman Conquest."
"This glass vial contains the air hissed by the asp with which Cleopatra allegedly committed suicide."
"Air from Tori Spelling's head."
"Air from the prehistoric era."
"Air that was once contained in a soap bubble in the dog washing scene in the movie Annie."
Why couldn't my flight have been delayed in Hartford? I could have spent those 28 hours breathing in the Air Museum, and all of it's wonders. Ah well, a reason to go back. If anyone is familiar with the Air Museum, please feel free to share some of your favorite exhibits so I can experience it vicariously.

P.S. This is the first post of my first blog. Hope you've enjoyed it!
P.P.S. I have nothing against Tori Spelling, other than her memoir was disappointingly vague on the gossipy details.